


Don’t Bring the Shield to Pride (It Doesn’t Matter if It’s Painted Rainbow)

by rainbowflavouredfabulous



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types
Genre: Bisexual Bucky Barnes, Bisexual Steve Rogers, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Polyamorous Character, Pride
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-28
Updated: 2015-08-28
Packaged: 2018-04-17 17:04:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4674545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainbowflavouredfabulous/pseuds/rainbowflavouredfabulous
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This fic was prompted by me daydreaming about a certain irl person and then screaming into my Stucky Squad chat "OKAY SO STEVE AND BUCKY GOING TO NEW YORK PRIDE OR SOMETHING AND THEY'RE JUST FRIENDS BUT THEY HOLD HANDS SO THEY DONT GET LOST (YOU CAN'T TAKE THE WAR OUT OF A SOLDIER) AND THEY'RE DOING THE USUAL TOO-FRIENDLY-TO-BE-PLATONIC FLIRTING AS USUAL AND THIS POLY PERSON COMES UP TO THEM AND ASKS IF THEY'RE TOGETHER AND AT FIRST THEY BOTH GO TO SAY NO BUT THEY LOOK AT EACH OTHER AND IN THAT MOMENT THEY KNOW THAT THEY LOVE EACH OTHER AND THEY KISS EACH OTHER SURROUNDED BY RAINBOWS AND FLAGS"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don’t Bring the Shield to Pride (It Doesn’t Matter if It’s Painted Rainbow)

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't yet gone to a Pride event (alas, the struggles of being a queer non-binary teen in a family of cishets) so some of the details may be off. I'm also not American so I apologise if these details are wrong as well
> 
> There's a brief mention of homophobic activity from the police during the 1930s as well as the one-time use of period-typical slurs. There's also the barest hint at suicide but blink and you'll miss it
> 
> Thanks to my wonderful beta, Soph, who made this a whole lot better

Steve and Bucky both had good and bad days. Bad days were always really, really bad. Bucky would hide in his room, curtains pulled over and curled in a corner, the heavy weight of over ninety years of memories crashing over him, often resulting in intense migraines. Steve, however, would go out on long rides on his motorbike. Nothing but the comforting pulse of the engine underneath him and the whipping of the wind would matter, reminding him of life.  
  
But on the good days? My God, sometimes Steve thought he would burst with joy. And right now? The world wasn't in danger - no one planning on world domination today - and Steve was with Bucky, always a reason for his high spirits. For once they felt a little bit normal, in civilian wear, but not quite trying to blend in. Certainly they were not as dressed as outrageous as some of the drag queens. Some days were bad but today… Today was good on another level. Steve was with his best guy in Manhattan, all around him were rainbows, flamboyant people of no discernible gender and far more positivity and tolerance he had ever seen publicly for people like him.  
  
He and Bucky had been at the Pride march for around an hour and whilst it was highly exhilarating, it was still a mass of people who could either be carrying weapons or innocent victims should an attack occur. Steve had thought, with a bit of coaxing and encouragement from Bucky, it was needless to bring the shield with him to Pride. You see, you could always take the soldier out of a war but you could never take the war out of a soldier. Even though it had been a long time since either of them had been only normal civilians, both sets of those ‘normal’ eyes constantly scrutinised and scanned the crowd and buildings, waiting for threats.  
  
"Jesus Christ, Steve, does this ever end?" Bucky muttered under his breath, pushing long strands of hair back into a hasty ponytail.  
  
"What, the flow of non-binaries or always feeling like something bad is going to happen?" Steve murmured back, the super soldier hearing being put into good use. He bumped his shoulder into Bucky's left one with more force than usual, in order for his friend’s pressure sensors to pick up on the signals, gaining the brunet's attention. Bucky was still a bit self-conscious about his metal arm, only recently getting  
used to showing it off in public. Anywhere else and people would probably be gawking but here, everyone else was more interested in the parade and floats. Half of them were coated in body paint today  
though, and many probably thought it was just that.  
  
"Come on, Buck, we can do this. We survived Clint's cooking, we can survive this," Steve encouraged with one of his sunny, infectious smiles. No one could resist Steven Grant Rogers' genuine smile, not  
the one plastered everywhere from the 1940s onwards. Bucky grew up with that smile, wanting to see it every day before he knew what true wanting was.  
  
"Guess so, punk. C'mere, I don't wanna lose you," Bucky said without preamble, grabbing at Steve's hand and holding it tight before turning his face towards the blond and smiling for real. God, it had been a long time since Steve had seen it; he could easily count the number of times Bucky smiled in the 21st century on one hand. Steve grinned back, already feeling safer with his best friend at his side. But what he didn’t realise is that his friend felt that way about him too. Oh, how in HYDRA’s grasp, he’d ached for that smile, that Steve, even when he didn’t remember what he was aching inside for.  
  
The crowd moved smoothly, the police more accepting of the LGBT+ community in this century than the last, the both of them noticed. Despite growing up in a queer neighbourhood, both of them steered clear of the gay clubs and bathhouses, warnings burned into their memories with images of people beating up fairies. Today though? Steve thought he would never see this, people of all orientations and genders being in one place and not being arrested and persecuted for it.  
  
Bucky whispered in his ear again, the crowd too loud to carry a regular conversation even with enhanced hearing. Steve couldn't help but grin at his friend's deadpan snark, burying his face into Bucky's neck trying to stifle his giggles at yet another dirty joke, courtesy of two years in the army. It had been a long time since it was just the two of them, just two bisexual twenty-something's holding hands in Pride and not caring about a thing.  
  
So it was understandable really that someone would notice. It was a hot day and even super soldiers can feel the beating heat. Stopping off at a vendor for water and snacks, Steve went to pull away from Bucky to delve into his pockets for change but Bucky knocked his hand away and grabbed at the coins in his pocket, winking cheekily before turning back to the vendor. "Don't worry Stevie, I got this."  
  
Handing over the coins, Bucky picked up the bottles and snacks and made to turn away before the vendor piped up. "Sorry to bother you but are you two together? You're a very cute couple," the Muslim woman asked, adjusting her hijab. Steve blushed red, blood flowing straight to his face, even on such a hot day as this.  
  
"Uh, no ma'am we're - um," Steve cut himself off, glancing down to where Bucky still held in his hand. Roaming his eyes upwards, he suddenly found himself fixated on Bucky's lips, red from being bitten constantly - a new habit plain old James Barnes from Brooklyn never had. In all the years that Steve had known Bucky, he had always believed, without a thought, that a life without Bucky was a life not worth living. It was ‘til the end of the line. And somewhere along that line, Steve realised he was hopelessly, dramatically and spectacularly in love with his best friend. He never knew when that happened. But he was in love with Bucky and Bucky was looking at him with that same adoration that always appeared when he let down his cocky smile and daredevil attitude to life.  
  
Bucky raised their hands together and kissed at Steve's knuckles. "Yeah. We're together," he said softly with such love Steve thought he was going to explode with joy.  
  
The vendor squealed. "I totally have to tell my partners about this!" Both Steve and Bucky laughed before leaning in, hands still held together, and kissing each other chastely, ninety years of love was intoxicating, flowing effortlessly between them.  
  
Yeah, today was one of the good days.

  
  
-

  
  
NYC Pride is proud to announce that Captain Steve Rogers and Sergeant James "Bucky" Barnes will both be attending the 2016 New York City PrideFest and will be at the Parade with the New York Area Bisexual Network.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [Tumblr!](http://www.lostlibraryofalex.tumblr.com)


End file.
